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Archive for October 2011

In the last few weeks, I've had the opportunity of doing some body building exercise. Every time I stepped into the gym, I learn one or two things on how to get my muscles bigger and perhaps stronger. My goals are broader chest and shoulders, bigger arms and tighter abs. My instructor taught me something in the course of attaining these goals and they include: 1. The more stress you put on your muscles, the bigger and stronger they become; 2. Try to eat more, healthy and learn to rest well. What I've found most fascinating is the first point. No muscle in the body is a waste. They become a waste when they lie dormant; that is, when we fail to use them.

During the week, I was thinking deeply and I gathered that it's just the same with the rest of our body. No part of our body is useless except for the ones we fail to use. In other words, there is a multiplying effect in strength, agility, ability that comes on anything we refuse to let lie dormant! Where am I going with this illustration? TALENTS! Yes, our talents are like muscles in the body. When we fail to explore, exploit or put to use our talents, they will lie dormant and ultimately follow us to our graves untapped.

Just like some people have got small muscles and they think it is impossible for them to grow bigger, some people think they have few or no talents at all; as such, they are a waste to their generation. I am here to tell you that every man, woman or child has a talent. Guess what? If you put to use your talent, you will get even more! However, if you fail to put to use that one talent you have, you are likely to die unknown. Stop your wishful thinking of, "I wish I have the kind of talents 'so and so' has, I would shake this generation". My friend, start shaking this generation with that one you have! Quit wishing... start acting.

It's my third week at the gym and I'm beginning to see changes. My arms are getting bigger. My muscles are getting stronger. I tell you, I can now feel my chest and shoulders expanding. The results of putting my muscles to work are beginning to excite me. It reminds me of when I thought I was a bad singer. Somehow, I got to learn how to play the keyboard. I developed my keyboard skills and straight off, that multiplied into me not only becoming an enviable singer but a good song writer as well. I tell you, everything you know how to do, get them out of where you've relegated them to. Begin using them and I assure you, they have a multiplying effect. I once believed I speak more than I could write. I thought the only gift I had was public speaking but I as soon as I continued putting to use my speaking ability, my writings became better and as I continued writing, I am getting better; and even moving on to diverse forms of writing like poetry, academic writing and so on.

Anything you use, has a multiplying effect! What you don't use, has a zero effect. No wonder Myles Munroe said, "the richest place on earth is the graveyard, because many have died with their potentials untapped". Refuse to die loaded! Be determined to give your all to this generation and the ones to come. You don't need a thousand talent to start with. You do not need even two start with; all you need it that one that you have! If you think you have none, you are just yet to discover it. Always remember, what you put to use has a multiplying effect! The more stress, the better!

Chris got to the interview room and his nerves got the better part of him. The look on the face of the panelists didn't seem convincing against his several attempts to make it past that stage. He got out of the interview room totally gutted. He concluded, "that's it. I am never going to get that job!" Two weeks later, He got a letter from the company saying, "Congratulations Mr Chris. We are pleased to offer you... as you were the only applicant for that position". Chris couldn't believe his stars. There were 50 other interviewees seated in the waiting room that day. Unknown to him however, they all applied for different position and none of them was in competition for the one he applied for.

It's amazing how we make conclusions on some issues in our lives. I am a football fan and I have seen games where I had completely lost faith in my team's survival and to my utmost amazement, they came back into the game and sometimes, even ended up winning. Who am I to make conclusions on the success and failure of another or even myself? I have come to discover in life, it is important to wait till the final whistle is blown before calling it quit. Some people have committed suicide at the nick of their life's breakthrough, only for some unidentified persons to inherit their sweat.

Think about the number of times in your life when you've felt like calling it quit and look at where you are today? If you do a mathematical analysis of those events, I am sure you would arrive at the conclusion that you were wrong even trying to quit before the final whistle. It's a season of students' assessment again for me this semester and one of my students sent me an email recently that reads, "Sam, it's the last day we're allowed to drop this course. I don't feel I did particularly well in the first assessment because I made a lot of mistakes. Would just like to know when we'd be getting our grades for the first assignment anyway". My reply, "[put her name here], from my records, you are in a pretty good standing and should you quit this course, you end up regretting a great deal. I'd advise you stay on, keep working hard on the rest of the assignments towards your final exams and I am sure you'd smile at last." Unknown to the student, despite her numerous mistakes, she still made a B, which in our school grading is 70%.

So, who are you to call it quit on yourself? Who are you to make conclusions on your efforts before the final whistle? If you are too quick to quit, you'll always be quick to bite your finger. The quest for success is a journey, not a destination. Though we fall in our strides, it should not be our call to quit till our dying day! Already making conclusions about your life's shortcomings, mistakes, hurts, pains, failures, wrongs, errors, falls? THINK AGAIN!